Hamburg, March 01: Researchers at Northwestern University in Illinois have said that blood-sugar levels once considered normal for pregnant women are not safe for baby or mother.
A fasting blood-sugar level of 92 or higher, a one-hour level of 180 or higher on a glucose tolerance test or a two-hour level of 153 or higher on a glucose tolerance test constitute serious risks to the mother and baby, concluded Lead author Boyd Metzger and an international group of 50 experts.
Metzger said that previously, these levels had been considered in the safe, normal range, and two elevated levels were required for a diagnosis of gestational diabetes.
The study, which according to Metzger is based on 23,000 women in nine countries, said that blood-sugar levels that were once considered in the normal range are now seen as causing a sharp increase in the occurrence of overweight babies with high insulin levels, early deliveries and other complications.
Previous guidelines to diagnose gestational diabetes were based on blood-sugar levels that identified women at high risk for developing diabetes in the future. The guidelines weren’t related to risks to the baby or other risks to the mother.
——–Agencies